Cute is What We Aim For
by the.goal.is.greatness
Summary: I love him on purpose. [Trunks x Goten]


**Title:** Cute is What We Aim For  
**Genre:** Romance / Humor  
**Rating:** T  
**Pairing:** Trunks x Goten  
**Spoilers:** N/A  
**Summary:** I love him on purpose.  
**Word Count:** 2,093  
**Warnings:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** _Dragonball Z_ is not mine. Title is a song. Summary is a quote from _Red, White & Royal Blue_.

**A/N:** You know, I tried to look up some oneshots with this pairing just to see if I was getting the personalities down well (since I haven't watched DBZ since GT came out) and you know what? It's harder to find that I thought it would be, so if anyone has any Trunks x Goten fic recs on here, that would be sweet.

* * *

Okay, in hindsight there were many, many ways this could have gone better. Like, they could have fused. They could have asked one or the other or both of their dad's for help. Or Gohan. Or anyone of a vast number of their friends. Really, the limit did not exist of people the pair of them knew that could kick an alien's ass in ten seconds flat.

But they didn't do any one of those things. They didn't even turn tail and run like wimps, which would have also saved them a lot of trouble in the future, but would have also been humiliating.

No, _instead_, the decided that, they, not quite twenty yet, were ready to do battle with a magic wielding alien from the depths of space. An alien who, with flicks of his fingers and wrists, could create flames or portals, or move objects, or freeze them in their tracks. It was, decidedly, Not Going Well.

Trunks hadn't thought once about giving up, not until he glanced to his left and watched Goten struggle to his feet. His shoulder was dislocated, he was breathing shallowly like his ribs were damaged. The ear closest to him had a trickle of blood leaking from it. His eyes looked glazed, but he was still forcing himself to his feet, still ready to stand beside his best friend and fight with him. To the death, if need be. Trunks felt a flutter in his stomach at the thought and for the first time thought of running.

"Now this is all very charming, but I have no time for this." He couldn't drag his attention away from Goten quick enough to see what symbols he performed or what the look on his face might give away. All he knew was that once minute he was looking at Goten and the next he was propelled forward by an invisible force. Their heads slammed together with the force of a car wreck, something cracked behind his eyes, and then he passed out.

* * *

When he comes to, it takes him a long time to focus his bleary vision and realize that he's in the med bay of Capsule Corp.

"You're awake, great!"

He focuses on his mother, her expression equal parts angry and relieved. "What happened?" His voice sounds gravely with disuse and, even though he keeps trying to blink the sleep out of his eyes, his vision is dark and cloudy.

"You tell me. You boys never came home and I traced your phone and your dad found you two beat up and unconscious out in the mesa. You've been out of it for three days."

_Three days?!_ He feels the panic swelling in his chest. "Goten – "

"Is fine." There's a pause, but he can't make out enough of her expression to see why. "Are your eyes okay?"

"Can't see." He should be more alarmed, he's sure, but he's alive. Goten is alive.

"Let me look – " There's a groan from somewhere to his left of someone wrenching themselves from slumber. "And there's your other half, just like clockwork."

He's sure his mom is really happy that they both wake up, for a moment anyway, but then Goten's eyes flutter open and Trunks can suddenly see again. But he doesn't see his friend, he sees himself. He can tell by the dawning horror in Goten's eyes that he's not seeing what he should either. It only takes them a moment to work out that they're seeing out of each other's eyes.

When they yell, Bulma almost has a heart attack.

* * *

They manage to explain it to… well, everyone, after they calm down enough to speak. After that, the adults all work out the best course of action. The Supreme Kai needs to be contacted. They need to get someone searching for the alien that did this or maybe just start planning on making a wish on the dragonballs. He can hear them all talking, but he's not really paying attention. He wants to see how upset Goten is, but he can't look at his face. Every time he tries he still just sees the same thing: Goten's hands clenched in his lap, the same thing his friend had been staring at for the past fifteen minutes.

"Mom, can we deal with this tomorrow?" The chatter stops. "I'm tired."

"Sure thing, sweetie, get your rest and we'll come up with a plan. Don't you worry!"

He smiles in what he thinks is her direction and everyone shuffles out of the room, calling their own encouragements and farewells. He lets the sound of their footsteps fade before he says anything. "Well, this sucks."

Goten snorts. "Yeah, you can say that again." His gaze finally lifts and Trunks still expects to be looking into bright, dark eyes, but it's only his own face he sees. He looks worried and tries to mask it. "This is so weird."

"Yeah…" He flips the sheets back and stands, which goes well for about five seconds until his equilibrium is thrown off by the fact that all he can see it himself trying to walk across the room. "Close your eyes." He knows when Goten complies because his world goes black and then it's easy for him to pretend he's just walking around with his eyes closed. Like a blind man he makes his way to the bathroom.

"If you have to… go to the bathroom… can you close your eyes, too?"

It takes him a moment to understand the thought process there, but when he does he blushes. "No! I'm just – " he fumbles under the counter until his hands slide against smooth glass. "- looking for something!" Grasping it delicately in his hands, he makes his way back to the room. "Open your eyes for a second." He sees himself standing between the two beds. "Okay, thanks." The image fades, but he knows all his has to do is take two steps to the right and his legs hit Goten's bed.

"Hey!"

"Scoot over." They organize themselves with only minimal grumbling, falling easily into the seating they had when they were young enough to have sleep overs and not care about sharing a bed. They hadn't done that it… many years, but the memory arranged them shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip in the narrow bed. Ignoring to closeness, Trunks shifted the item in his hands so they could both hold it. "Alright, open your eyes."

Vivid, searing relief surges through him when their faces appear in the mirror. Goten's eyes flicker from one reflection to the other before settling on his own. Trunks looks towards where his own face would be reflected. Now they can each see each other. Trunks wants to drag his eyes over his best friends face to make sure he's really okay like he'd been telling his mother all morning, but his eyes are locked wherever Goten's are. But it's enough. He feels some of the tension in his chest unclench at the sight of tousled hair and black eyes.

"This is so weird." Goten's voice is quiet, hushed.

"I mean, there's worse people you could be stuck with, right?" He laughs, shoving their shoulders together playfully. "What if you were stuck with my dad or Marron or Piccolo?" With each name Goten laughs a little louder at the mental image, until Trunks get a quick glimpse of him roaring with laughter before his eyes flicker closed in mirth. He tries to freeze that image of happiness onto his eyelids.

Goten's laughter trickles off. "What are you looking at?"

Trunks starts, realizing that he's probably looked towards his best friend without realizing it and has been forcing Goten to stare at himself for several long moments. _Shit_. "I'm looking at whatever you're looking at, dummy." And the moment dissolves into laughter again.

* * *

It's a secret he's kept from everyone he knows, almost from himself, for the longest time. That he only had one best friend his whole life for a reason. Has never cared about Marron for a reason. For him, there had only ever been one person. And it would be fine with him if that person never found out about it. Ever. It wasn't worth this friendship to ruin it by announcing his feelings and having the not be returned. So it was fine. He was fine. Really. It was almost like a relationship – they trained together, hung out together all the time, knew each other in and out, could have entire conversations without words. So what if sometimes he wanted to entwine their fingers, or press their foreheads together, or tangle their limbs up? What they had was almost as good.

"You're doing it."

Shit.

"_Again_."

Double shit.

He slammed his eyes closed, but it was too late. Goten had caught him staring (or _trying to stare_) at him again. He couldn't help it, it was second nature to him to focus his attention of his friend when he spoke. Or when he wasn't speaking and Trunks thought he could get away with it. Only now he never could get away with it, because every time he turned his gaze towards where he thinks Goten's face is, Goten can see it. Like right now.

"What is so interesting?" He doesn't sound mad, just curious.

"I – " Well it was everything really. Those messy locks just begging to be have fingers carded through them. The wide, bright eyes. The face that had started to grow into itself, lose its baby softness and reveal the angles of a pert nose and a jaw so chiseled it could carve marble. His shoulders had widened, his hips narrowed. His lips, always pulled back in a blinding smile, always drew his immediate attention. He didn't know how to answer without doing the very thing he was worried about doing. "Um…"

He doesn't notice when his nerves make him like his lips, but he notices when Goten's eyes flick towards the sound. All he sees in his mind's eye are his own wide, terrified eyes, his flushed cheeks. He'd kill to know what Goten is seeing on his own face right now. Ah, screw it.

"You." His voice comes out garbled, so he clears his throat, before continuing. "You're what's so interesting." He reaches out until his hands meet shoulders, sliding them up and up until they're cupping a face, so he can lean forward and unerringly place their lips together.

When those lips open on a gasp, Trunks fumbles to respond in a way that's romantic and masculine and adult, but he's pretty sure he botches it completely because no one knows what they're doing the first time around. But he's also pretty sure Goten doesn't notice or care, since his hands are fisted in Trunks' jacket and his head is tilted back on a sigh. Air becomes a priority before too long and he pulls away just far enough to lean their foreheads together.

"You're interesting," he whispers against those lips, not giving Goten anytime to respond, in case he comes to his senses and punches Trunks in the face. "Because you're brave and funny and just… the cutest person I've ever seen." His face is burning with mortification. "And you're my best friend and I don't want to ruin that… I don't even know if there's someone else you like – "

Goten throaty chuckle ripples across his lips like lightning that stretches all the way to his toes. "You idiot." When a chin bumps against his and lips press back against his it's the best thing that has ever happened. The world could end and he wouldn't care. His mother could tell him there was no way to fix their eyesight problem and he wouldn't care. Nothing could be better than this. "It's always been you."

Okay, maybe he lied.


End file.
